World

The Lodge is said to be a symbol of the world. Its form--an oblong square, whose greatest length is from east to west--represents the shape of the inhabited world according to the theory of the ancients. The "clouded canopy," or the "starry decked covering" of the Lodge, is referred to the sky. The sun, which enlightens and governs the world at morning, noon, and evening, is represented by the three superior officers. And, lastly, the draft, laboring in the work of the Lodge, present a similitude to the inhabitants of the world engaged in the toils of life. While the Lodge is adopted as a copy of the Temple, not less universal is that doctrine which makes it a symbol of the world (see Form of the Lodge).